British Columbians are divided over the province’s plan to free the occupation from crime in small amounts. too much intoxicationAccording to a new survey.
The survey, conducted by Léger and provided exclusively to Global News, shows that legalizing or legalizing hard drugs is likely to be much less popular among British Columbians than the legalization of cannabis.
“When it comes to hard drugs, legalization Only 50% support is available. And if we are talking about full legalization, it drops to 35 percent in BC, ”said Steve Mossop, executive vice president of the Vancouver office of the lager.
In May, BC became the first jurisdiction in Canada to be exempt from Canada’s Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, removing criminal penalties for possession of small amounts of certain hard drugs.
The three-year relaxation will be effective from January 31, 2023.
The move, which does not legalize drugs, means people with 2.5 grams or less of opioids, cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA for personal use will not be arrested, charged, or their drugs confiscated. will be done.
“Our numbers are slightly higher than the rest of the country, but there is still considerable opposition to the de-criminalization and legalization of hard drugs in our province,” Mosop said.
The survey found that more British Columbians supported the idea of drug decriminalization than opposed it, and that support appeared to be increasing.
Forty-nine percent of respondents in BC said they supported the idea, while 39 percent opposed it. Support was above 43 percent in June, although the previous survey had a much smaller sample size.
However, when respondents were asked about the full legalization of hard drugs, support fell significantly.
BC becomes first province to remove criminal penalties for possession of certain hard drugs
Only 35 percent supported that idea, while 53 percent opposed it. The smaller poll in June found 26 percent support for legalization.
The figures fell even more sharply when respondents were asked about the possibility of expanding non-criminalization to include youth 12-17 years old.
An impressive 63 percent of respondents were against it, while 25 percent were in favor.
“So there is a lack of support in BC, especially as it pertains to youth, and it still has to be resolved what implications for that group of people to criminalize or legalize at all,” Mosop said. .
In contrast, cannabis legalization for adults retained the support of 69 percent of respondents.
Support for drug decriminalization was strongest among people aged 18-34 (60 percent), those with university education (55 percent), as well as men and people living in urban areas (52 percent each).
Support was lowest among women (46 percent), those aged 35–54 (44 percent), those with a college or high school education (45 and 47 percent, respectively) and people in rural and suburban environments (46 and 47 percent). was. percent respectively).
B.C.’s Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions says the de-criminalization plan is just one of many parts of the approach to the deadly drug crisis.
“Criminalization drives people to hide their drug use and often use it alone, and given the growing toxic drug supply – this can be fatal,” the ministry said in a statement.
“By allaying the fear of criminalization, people will feel safer to seek care and support for issues of substance abuse and addictions.”
The ministry also said that there is no plan to change the eligibility age under decriminalization exemption.
However, in its official submission to the federal government applying for the exemption, the province appeared to open the door to the possibility.
“Further work will reveal how decriminalization can be applied appropriately to youth and young adults between the ages of 12 and 18,” the submission states.
“BC recognizes that youth are vulnerable to substance abuse-related harm and is committed to developing an evidence-based and equitable approach to meeting the needs of youth within its crime-free framework.”
On Thursday, the BC Coroner’s Service reported that at least 195 people had died from toxic, illicit drugs in May, bringing the total number of confirmed drugs in BC this year to 940.
This was the highest number of months in the first five months of any calendar year in the history of the province.
© 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.